Tennessee Swimming and Diving Sweeps Louisville; Men Win by One Point

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

Tennessee swimming and diving picked up two more impressive wins after upsetting Virginia last week as they took down Louisville on the road this week, with the Vols winning the men’s meet by one point.

Team Scores:

Men: Tennessee 150.5, Louisville 149.5
Women: Tennessee 172.5, Louisville 127.5

RESULTS

Tennessee Swimming and Diving Press Release

No. 3/10 Tennessee swimming and diving came away victorious Thursday, defeating No. 11/13 Louisville on the road at the Ralph Wright Natatorium.

The third-ranked Lady Vols beat the 13th-ranked Louisville women, 172.5-127.5, while the 10th-ranked Vols won a tight battle against the Cardinals’ 11th-ranked men’s team, 150.5-149.5.

The women’s competition was close at the first swimming break but coming out of it, the Lady Vols locked in and pulled away from the Cardinals.

“We had a really solid first half of the meet and Louisville is a really competitive team, which is one of the reasons I love this dual meet every single year,” associate head coach Ashley Jahn said. “They did a really good job, where we were able to take some shots early in the meet, they were able to minimize it in their own way. Our team was really fired up for the second half of the meet and had some really high goals of what they wanted to accomplish and did a fantastic job of executing.”

Senior Erika Brown led the charge for the women with three individual wins while fellow senior Meghan Small brought home two event wins. Both Lady Vols helped power the 200 medley relay to victory with Small swimming the leadoff leg and Brown on anchor.

Brown posted her second three-event win day of the season as she took first in the 100 backstroke (53.03), 100 freestyle (48.86) and 100 butterfly (52.59).

Small’s wins came in the 200 free (1:48.59) and the 200 breaststroke (2:12.89). Her time in the breaststroke is an NCAA B-cut, giving her four after the season’s first four meets.

“Erika and Meghan are incredible leaders,” associate head coach Ashley Jahn said. “They are both different in how they lead and I am really proud of both of them. Meghan had some really great performances today. Erika, all of the focus she puts in at practice, she is constantly looking for ways to get better. If something doesn’t go the way she wants it too, she turns it into an opportunity to figure out how she could have done it better or uses it as an opportunity to respond better the next time it happens.”

Junior Bailey Grinter threw down an excellent performance in the 50 free, touching the wall first at 22.59. The time sets an NCAA B-cut and moves her into the top 15 nationally entering the weekend.

“Bailey has been amazing this year,” Jahn said. “She has been having fun at practice and is really focused. She is still making huge gains and what she is doing in the pool and also in the weight room, she has always been a really strong leader for the team, but she is stepping into that roll now even more. It’s been really fun to see.”

The men trailed Louisville going into the meet’s final event, the 400 freestyle relay. However, the Vols relay squad of Seth Thompson-Bailey, Nolan Briggs, Josh Walsh and Alec Connolly posted a 2:57.49, placing first and securing just enough points to edge the Cardinals.

“It’s a relay which is what our team is all about, team,” associate head coach Lance Asti said. “It’s four guys counting on one another, relying on the brother next to them and they did it for their team. This is another great measuring stick to see where we are and we always expect to win but our goals are still in front of us.”

Senior Taylor Abbott continues to impress early in the season as he placed first in the 500 and 1,000 freestyle, lowering his season-best time in the 1,000 to 9:09.93. He won the 500 free with a time of 4:27.00. Going into this weekend, the senior ranks among the top 15 in the country in both events.

“He’s buying in,” Asti said. “Coach Rich Murphy has done a great job of developing him and that whole group. He’s listening and he’s learning and I also think he isn’t just worried about himself but he’s worried about his teammates. You see the impact in his races with Ethan Sanders and I think Taylor is a big part of why Ethan is improving. Those two guys have gotten into a grove of working together and helping each other.”

Michael Houlie had another strong showing in the men’s 100 breaststroke, lowering his season best time to 53.09, winning the event. The sophomore’s time is currently the second-fastest nationally, heading into the weekend.

“This whole team, we’re doing something really special right now,” Asti said. “It’s a bunch of guys that believe in the mission, that believe in the work that we’re doing and they are competing in the way we need to compete. We’re ferocious in competition and that’s how we need to be if we’re going to be a team that’s moving towards championships.”

It was a tough day for Tennessee in diving as Louisville swept the men’s and women’s competition. Ana Celaya Hernandez placed third on the women’s 1-meter board, scoring 267.08 to lead the Lady Vols. On the 3-meter springboard, Grace Cable bounced back from a tough 1-meter, finishing second with a final score of 313.20.

On the men’s side, Will Hallam was second on the 1-meter board at 297.98 and second on 3-meter with a score 357.75.

“Credit to Louisville, they came in here in their first meet and stood up and gave us a good fight in a tough environment,” diving coach Dave Parrington said. “I don’t mean that in a negative way, I mean that in a positive manner. Made it a tough fantastic college dual meet environment. It was exciting, loud and noisy. We took some lumps and bumps along the way but that will benefit us down the road.”

Louisville Press Release

The University of Louisville No. 11/13 men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams won 15 events but fell by the slimmest of margins to the No. 10/3 Tennessee Volunteers Thursday afternoon at the Ralph Wright Natatorium.

Louisville men fell 150.5 – 149.5 and the women fell 172.5-127.5 in a tightly contested showdown. The Cardinals were paced by multiple event winners Nicolas Albiero (100/200 back and 100 fly), Daniel Sos (200 back, 200 IM), Daniel Pinto (1- and 3-meter diving) and Molly Fears (1- and 3-meter diving).

“We always want to win but I loved the way we fought,” said Arthur Albiero, UofL head coach. “No excuses ever but we will learn from this and get better. We left a few opportunities on the table and that is part of it. As a new team competing together for the first time, we learned things about each other. We will use this as an opportunity to get better.”

In the 200 medley relay, the Louisville foursome of Ashlyn Schoof (25.86), Kaylee Wheeler (28.25), Grace Oglesby (24.20) and Casey Fanz (22.89) put up the second place time of 1:41.20. The event was won by UT’s A-relay that finished in 1:39.41.

It was a dramatic duel down the stretch in the men’s 200 medley relay, with the Vols out-touching the Cards by .06 of a second with a 1:27.07. The team of Mitchell Whyte (22.41) Evgenii Somov (23.79), Nicolas Albiero (21.27) and Mihalis Deliyiannis (19.66) put up a 1:27.13.

In the women’s 1000 freestyle, Maria Sumida saved her fastest split for last as she out-kicked the field for the winning time of 9:57.81. Sophie Cattermole was third with a time of 10:02.48. Maggie Jahns was fifth in 10:25.39.

In the men’s 1000 freestyle, Ilia Sibirtsev was the top Cardinal with a time of 9:20.57. Tennessee’s Taylor Abbott took top honors with a 9:09.93. Graham Barrett was fourth in 9:25.79. T.C. Smith went 9:26.92 for fifth.

In the 200 freestyle, Arina Openysheva was the top Cardinal finisher with a third place time of 1:49.12 in a tightly contested race. UT’s Meghan Small was the winner, posting a 1:49.59. Diana Dunn was fifth, stopping the clock at 1:50.96 for the Cardinals.

In the men’s 200 freestyle, Colton Paulson surged to the wall in 1:38.40 for the win. Michael Eastman was third in 1:39.33 and Bartosz Piszczorowicz touched fifth in 1:40.27.

In the 100 backstroke, UT’s Erika Brown put up a B-time with a 53.03. Ashlyn Schoof is the fastest Cardinal with a 55.45 to touch third. Kyla Alexander was fourth, touching in 56.71.

In the men’s 100 backstroke, Nicolas Albiero left the field in his wake, touching in an NCAA B-standard winning time of 47.31. UofL’s Mitchell Whyte was second with a 48.13 and Jack Wever boarded a 49.42 for fourth.

Morgan Friesen and Kaylee Wheeler made it a 1-2 finish in the 100 breaststroke with Friesen nabbing the win in 1:02.64 and Wheeler getting second in 1:02.66 (tying with UT’s Alexis Yager). Mariia Astashkina was fourth in 1:02.83.

In the men’s 100 breaststroke, Evgenii Somov boarded a second place time of 53.59 for an NCAA B-cut just behind UT’s Michael Houlie’s 53.09. Sasha Palazzo was fifth in 55.89.

Grace Oglesby won the 200 butterfly with a B-cut time of 1:58.92. Alena Kraus was close behind with a second place time of 1:59.61.

In the men’s 200 butterfly, Jarrett Jones was the top finisher for Louisville when he tied for second with a 1:49.53. Greyson Alarcon was sixth with a time of 1:52.33. The event was won by UT’s Marc Hinawi’s 1:47.97.

Lainey Visscher was the top finisher for the Cardinals with a third place time of 23.54 in the 50 freestyle. Casey Fanz was fourth in 23.63 and Avery Braunecker was fifth in 23.65. The event was won by Bailey Grinter’s 22.59 time.

In the men’s 50 free, Mihalis Deliyiannis bulled his way to a win with a 20.31 just .02 ahead of UT’s Alec Connolly. UofL’s Caleb Duncan was fourth in 20.73.

In 1 meter diving, Molly Fears took top honors, posting the winning score of 300.09. Michaela Sliney was second with a score of 280.95. Abigail Andrews was fourth, posting a 242.93. Abbie Erickson was sixth with a 238.43. Breanna Price had a 220.20 and Ellie Dodd boarded a 198.15.

UT’s Ericka Brown won the 100 freestyle with a B-Cut time of 48.86. Louisville’s Arina Openysheva was third with a time of 50.43. Christiana Regenauer was fifth in 51.51 followed by Lainey Visscher’s 52.00 and Casey Fanz’ 52.64.

UT’s Alec Connolly won the 50-free with a time of 43.94. Bartosz Piszczorowicz was third as the top Cardinal with a time of 45.37. Michael Eastman was fifth in 45.74.

In the 200 Backstroke, Ashlyn Schoof was second with a 2.00.67 as the top Cardinal. UT’s Kaitlin Harty went 1:58.55 to win the event. Cardinal Annette Schultz was third with a time of 2:01.68.

Cardinal Daniel Sos put up the fastest time of the field with a mark of 1:46.07 in the 200 backstroke. For UofL Jack Wever was third in 1:48.60 and Nikos Sofianidis was fourth in 1:49.02.

Morgan Friesen posted a B-standard time of 2:13.32 for second place in the 200 breaststroke. Mariia Astashkina was third in 2:16.29. Diana Dunn was sixth with a time of 2:20.35.

In the men’s 200 breaststroke, Evgenii Somov was the only swimmer under two minutes with a winning time of 1:58.24. Aaron Parrot was sixth with a time of 2:11.08 and Sasha Palazzo was seventh in 2:13.22 for the Cards.

In the women’s 500 freestyle, UT’s Alexis Yager just out-touched a hard-charging Maria Sumida. The pair finished 4:53.16 and 4:53.28 respectively. Sophie Cattermole was right behind them, touching third in 4:54.39 for the Cards.

In the men’s 500 freestyle, Ilia Sibirtsev was the top finisher for the Cardinals, touching third in 4:30.41. Hayden Curley was fifth, going 4:36.22 and T.C. Smith was sixth in 4:37.61. The event was won by UT’s Taylor Abbott in 4:27.00.

In the 100 butterfly, Nicolas Albiero was the best in the field with the winning time of 47.90. Nikos Sofianidis was sixth with a time of 50.11.

Daniel Pinto won the men’s 1-meter diving with a score of 302.48. Kivanc Gur was third, boarding a 278.93. Sky Geovanni was fourth with a time of 276.23, Sean Riley posted a 272.48 and Logan Smith put up a 250.50.

In the women’s 200 IM, Maria Sumida was third with a time of 2:04.07. Diana Dunn was sixth with a time of 2:05.48 and Morgan Friesen was seventh in 2:07.36. The event was won by Tennessee’s Tess Ciepulcha.

In the men’s 200 IM, Daniel Sos was first to the wall leaving the field in his rear view with almost a four second margin for the winning time of 1:47.32. Jarrett Jones was third, posting a 1:51.48 with teammate Greyson Alarcon going 1:57.92.

In women’s 3-meter diving, Molly Fears made it a sweep with a winning score of 328.35. Cardinals Abigail Andrews was third, posting a 290.48 and Michaela Sliney was fifth with a mark of 276.18.

Daniel Pinto made it a complete Louisville diving sweep with a win in the men’s 3-meter diving, posting a 369.00. Sky Geovanni was third with a score of 298.65 and Kivanc Gur was fourth with a 282.68.

In the women’s 400 freestyle relay, the team of Christiana Regenauer (51.14), Arina Openysheva (50.65), Casey Fanz (51.03), and Lainey Visscher (51.11) combined for the second place time of 3:23.93. The event was won by Tennessee’s A-relay which touched in 3:19.88.

The men’s meet came down to the final relay, in a thrilling race the Cards were edged by .34 of a second after leading most of the race. Nicolas Albiero led off with a 44.55, followed by Evgenii Somov (44.08), Bartosz Piszczorowicz (44.76) and Michael Eastman anchored with a 44.44. Tennessee put up the winning time of 2:57.49.

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Mary Anne Townsend

4 years ago

Go Vols!!?